Page 15 of A Seaside Return

The young woman at the counter looked so much like her father. “Good morning. Can I get you a table? Or would like a chair at the counter? We have a lovely new waitress today named Luna.”

“Luna? No way. Are you serious? Luna Grace?”

“I don’t know her last name. She’s about my father’s age, probably your age, too. I’ve never seen you in here before. Are you from Enchanted Cove?”

“You could say that. A long time ago, I grew up here. Yes, I knew your father. We were good friends. I recently sent him a letter telling him I was coming home. I just got back to town yesterday. Something was telling me to come home.”

“I’m Bonnie, his daughter. Emma, my mother, is in the kitchen.”

Ronan smiled, masking the ache in his chest at hearing Luna was home, too. He was good at keeping his emotions under control and laughed. “I know who you are. Shaun's pride and joy. You were this big the last time I saw a photo. How big you’ve gotten. I’m Ronan.”

“Oh. He talks about you all the time, about all the trouble you two got into, and the fun you had growing up.”

Another customer came in. Her eyes darted away, giving Ronan a chance to gather his wits as he thought about Luna.

“So, where can I seat you?”

“If Luna is working the counter, I will sit there. I can’t wait to see her again.”

Six

“Thank you for putting me at the counter, Emma. I was feeling so flustered with all those customers at the tables. Besides, I don’t have that far to walk to grab the food. I can get to the coffee quickly.”

“You got yourself all worked up over nothing. It’s just your first day, and shouldn’t be this stressful. I can tell you, neither I nor my husband are going to fire you unless maybe you spill some burning hot coffee on someone's lap. Otherwise, it is good. Here, I see a new customer coming in to sit down at the counter. Bonnie is seating him. Now smile, you're doing great and go get him.”

Emma’s motivational speech did nothing to soothe Luna’s anxiety. Something was wrong. She could feel it. It wasn’t often she had this kind of feeling, but since she’d awoke that morning, something was nagging at her.

Before she headed out of the kitchen, she took a few deep breaths and stared at herself in the mirror. The worry she felt was clearly written on her face, and there was nothing she could do to get rid of it.

The black pants and shirt she’d worn seemed customary, although Shaun had not told her about a dress code. All the other ladies were dressed like that. The colorful apron each wore matched the one at her waist.

She lightly brushed her hands down the front of it, reached in her pocket to make sure she had her pen and paper, and tried to ignore the warning bells in her head as she picked up a stack of plates.

The warning bells were increasing rapidly as if something major was about to happen. The only thing she could think of was her son, that something was wrong, but her instincts told her that wasn’t it.

Rounding the corner, she had her answer. Her heart stopped beating for a second, and suddenly she could think of nothing. The plates she held dropped and scattered everywhere as she stared into eyes she’d never thought to see again. “It can’t be…”